Mia sat across from three of her staff employees as they waited for Steven to walk into the conference room. They were meeting to go over strategies for creating a better business for MWSA. While the others were going over their reports, Mia’s thoughts weren’t on the business at hand.

She could only think about that man from last night. The way he looked at her set her on fire, his smoldering eyes, and the way he touched her.

She barely slept all night, and when she did, she dreamed she ran through a maze of white curtains flowing in the wind, him behind each curtain. She wanted to touch him, but each time she reached out toward him, the white curtain he was behind would release itself and float up and away. She woke up hot and very aroused, and since then, she hadn’t been able to think of anything except for him. She touched her lips with her fingertip, still feeling the warmth from his breath so close to her.

“Mia?”

She blinked several times and looked up at Steven as he put his hand on her arm. “I’m sorry,” she said, looking at the others. They were all looking at her, concerned that she wasn’t herself.

“Are you okay? Are you feeling well?” Steven was always so kind to her.

“Yes, I’m sorry. Late night last night. I and some of my girlfriends went out.”

“It’s not like you to be hungover for work. Your head is always in the game.”

“My friend is getting married. We were celebrating, that’s all.”

Steven waited a few moments, knowing something was up with her, but let it go. “George, how is the investment project coming along?” he asked one of the three sitting opposite him and Mia.

“I’m working on it.”

“Why is that?” asked Mia, concerned. “It should have been a done deal by now. We should have the money in our accounts. What’s the holdup?”

“I have three calls into the bank. I keep getting the same runaround. It seems everyone I need to talk to is either in meetings or out of town.”

“Keep trying, okay?” she encouraged. “As of right now, our company is doing pretty well, considering. I think if we do a press release across social media, introducing our newest products, it should help. It may even be enough to help push the investment through.”

“Mia,” Steven said. “We can’t rely on this investment. We have to make a plan in case it doesn’t go through.”

“It will,” she said quickly. “We have a solid proposal. There’s no reason for them to say no.”

“It isn’t concrete.”

“Steven is right,” said George. “There has to be a reason they are prolonging their answer.”

“We need a backup plan,” Steven continued. “Think long term. If this falls through, MWSA will be in trouble.”

“I thought of that. I want to go big.”

Mia pushed a flyer toward them.

“The New York fashion show is coming up next spring. The promotional department always puts together beauty kits for those attending. They use those products on the models. I want to be part of that kit. If we can develop a massive media kit including financials and Andrew’s famous sales pitch, we’ll be a shoe-in, and it will put us back on top.”

“You are genius!” Steven said, hugging her tightly. “This is why we work so well together.”

“If this goes through, I promise bonuses for everyone involved. But we need to start now. We have no time to waste.”

When they were all in agreement, Mia ended the meeting and thanked everyone for their time. She sat back down, and Steven waited for the others to leave. Once the door closed behind them, he turned to her and lost his smile.

“Let’s hold off on the press release.”

“Why? It’s perfect.”

“At least the part that involves the investment project.”

“Steven? What aren’t you telling me?”

“I didn’t want to say anything in front of the others yet, but the project is wrapped up in a whole lot of red tape. Everything we do is critical, and timing is of the essence. They can pull the rug out from under us anytime they want to.”

“Well, of course they can. But they have no reason to do so.”

“Yes, they do.”

“How do you know? What are you getting at?”

“I have connections at the bank.”

“Well, how can we help it? What can we do?”

“There is nothing we can do, Mia. Take a guess who’s on the committee for approval.”

Mia put her head in her hand and closed her eyes. “Reese Donovan.”

“You got it.”

“Why does he hate me? Does he have his filthy hands in everything?”

“Come here,” he said, pulling her up out of her seat. He wrapped his arms around her and comforted her. As he stroked her arm, she felt safe, as she always had around him since she was a little girl. No one else had ever seen this vulnerable side of her.

“I adore you, Mia. You know that, right?”

She nodded her head and pulled back from him. His familiar scent kept her grounded, humble, and vulnerable. He’d helped make her the strong woman she’d become.

“I’m okay. Thank you.” She picked up the paperwork still strewn all over the table in front of her and quickly got back on track with the subject at hand.

“So, we have a meeting with the devil himself, and I assume, his two evil spawn,” she said, not looking up at him.

“Yes,” he said with defeat in his voice. “I was able to push it to next week, but they are determined. Did you find out what he wants to meet with us about?”

“No. I talked to his air-headed son, Edward. He was clueless.”

“That whole family can go to hell as far as I’m concerned.”

“I’m scared, Steven. What if this falls through and we lose?”

“Don’t think like that. We have a good staff. If we all put our heads together, we’ll think of something. This company isn’t going anywhere.” He watched her worry increase and rubbed her arm. “Come on. Let’s get out of here. Knock off early and do something non-business related.”

“I can’t. I only have time for a quick lunch. I have some things to wrap up before the weekend.”

“You aren’t working Saturday?”

“No. I have plans.”

“Good ones, I hope.”

“I’m taking Emily to the Cape to see Mom and Dad over the weekend. It’s been a while since they’ve seen her, and I owe her the chance to know them.”

“That’s great. How are they doing, anyway? I’ve been meaning to go and see them, but can’t seem to find the time.”

“Why don’t you come with us this weekend? It will be perfect. I know Dad would jump at the chance to see you.”

“Nah. This is Emily’s weekend with them. I don’t want to steal that from her. I’ll make it another weekend.”

“Well, if you change your mind, the offer still stands. Our flight doesn’t leave until tomorrow morning.”

He nodded and smiled. Mia knew Steven had developed stronger feelings for her, but she didn’t know how strong. Was he making excuses to keep the distance between them?

“I’d like to take you and Emily out for lunch soon. It has been too long since I’ve seen her. I wouldn’t want her to forget me.”

“Steven, that’s not possible. You’re unforgettable.” She touched his face and smiled. “We would love to have lunch with you. I’ll let you know when we get back from the Cape. I hear that place on East 76th is pretty good. Um, Bemelmans? It’s a piano bar that serves excellent food.”

She had no idea if they served food at all, but it was the only connection she had to the man she’d met. The man she couldn’t stop thinking about; the man who’d invaded her dreams.

“Sounds good. If I don’t see you the rest of the day, have a great weekend.” His tone was calm, solemn, and he picked up his things and walked out of the room.

Mia felt a twinge of guilt. She wanted to give Steven what he wanted. He deserved it. He was good, honest, and true and would make any woman a hell of a good husband. She just wasn’t attracted to him in that way. She had known him for so long that kissing him would have been more like kissing her father.

Once out the door, Mia headed toward a small restaurant when she noticed a man on the other side of the street walking in the same direction. She stopped walking and stared, her heart beating a little harder. It’s him!

As if he’d heard her thoughts, he looked directly at her, smiled and waved. He motioned over and asked if she wanted to walk with him.

What should she do? She felt breathless. What the hell, Mia. Pull it together. She nodded and smiled back, and waited for him to cross.

Traffic was ruthless, and it took him several minutes to get to her. She would have canceled her plans with her parents to wait for him to get to her.

“Hi,” he said, stepping up on the curb.

“Hi.” It’s definitely him. She felt like a school girl with a crush on the popular boy.

“What a tremendous surprise. What brings you this way?” he asked. He studied her face the same way he did in the bar that night.

“I work in the area. I was going for some lunch.”

“Would it be too forward to ask you to join me for lunch?”

“Not at all,” she said without hesitation. “I would really like that.” And at that moment, Mia’s plans for the afternoon changed.

They walked along, side by side, heat building between them each time their bodies made accidental contact. They talked and laughed through a long lunch, and when he walked her out, she would have done anything to keep their encounter from ending.

“You never told me your name that night,” she said, walking with her arm linked through his.

“I didn’t, did I? I apologize. It was a bit of an awkward ending to my night. You had vanished from my sight.”

“My girlfriends dragged me out.” They walked a little further. “Is it a secret?”

“Is what a secret?”

“You’re name.”

He chuckled. “No. Not at all. It’s Ed—Eddie.”

“Well, Eddie, I’m Mia. But, then you already knew that. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

“It’s been too long already.”

Her lips parted at the idea that he wanted to be with her as badly as she wanted him. When he turned toward her and stopped in the street, her heart fluttered. He cupped her face in his hands, much like he had on the dancefloor, and he gazed into her eyes.

“I should have done this when I had the chance. I’m not losing that again.” The blue in his eyes was deep enough to lose herself in. She did, right until he leaned down and kissed her. It would have been quite the romantic moment if there hadn’t been paparazzi popping out of bushes to take their picture.

“Come on,” he said, grabbing her hand and running down the street. They giggled like children as they ran around the corner and into an alleyway. She looked in further and crinkled her nose at an overflowing dumpster. “Better?” he said, grinning.

“It’s better than being in the next gossip column of The Post.”

“Now, where were we?” He pulled her close and watched her face as he kissed her. His eyes closed when hers did, and the world fell away around them. She could no longer think about anything except his lips on hers. She leaned into his kiss wanting more. She felt his tongue push through and into her mouth, so warm and inviting.

Mia melted in his arms as the kiss deepened and took her away from her troubles.

“Ever since last night, I can’t stop thinking about you,” he said breathlessly.

“Same. You’re in my dreams at night. You’re on my mind as soon as I wake up.”

He pressed his body into hers, an inferno igniting within her. She slid her hands into his suit coat and wrapped them around him, his body tightening from her touch. Everywhere she touched felt hard and defined. She grabbed his shirt and pulled it free from his pants, her hands exploring to get to bare skin. When her fingers touched his sides, she held her breath. She inched her hands up underneath his shirt and caressed his body. Tight, toned, smooth. Oh, God.

She leaned back and looked at him. His eyes were half closed, his mouth slightly parted, his breathing a little heavier.

“Don’t go back to work,” he said, his eyes consuming her face. “Stay with me.”

“No, I…can’t. I can’t.”

He kissed her again, with more aggression, with more want, more desire.

“You’re affecting me.”

“I hope that’s not a bad thing.”

“In certain ways, it’s the best thing that could happen to me,” he said, not taking his eyes off her. “In other ways, it is the worst.”

“What does that mean, exactly?”

“I hope to see you again very soon, Mia.” He let her go and walked out of the alleyway.

“Wait,” she said, her hand outstretched toward him. “What did you mean by that?”

“It’s not easy to explain. Go back to work. I will see you soon.”

“Okay,” she said, still spinning from the kiss. He kissed her one last time before walking away. “Wait. Don’t you want my number?”

“I’ll find you very soon.” He waved, smiled, and disappeared around the corner.

After a wonderful weekend with her parents, her father sat her down and explained his idea to save her company. She was very excited and decided to stay until Monday afternoon to meet with them. As soon as she was on the plane back to New York, she pulled her phone out, elated beyond control.

“Hey, Mia. Are you back in town?” Steven asked.

“No, I just boarded the plane. I stayed an extra day, and I have some amazing news. I had to talk to you.”

“Is everything okay? Emily okay?”

“She is more than okay. She is staying the week with my parents, and they’re going to take her sailing.”

“Well, that sounds like fun, but I don’t understand why that is so exciting. You sound like you are going to jump out of your skin.”

“MWSA is going to be okay!”

“What do you mean?”

“I found an investor! Well, sort of.”

“Who? Tell me everything.”

“My father is good friends with some people who work at an investment firm in Massachusetts. They’re golf buddies. When he found out what was happening, all he did was make a phone call. He offered his retirement as collateral. Steven! It’s a done deal! We did it!”

“Wow. I don’t know what to say. That’s amazing news! We should celebrate.”

“I need you to keep it under wraps for now. Don’t even tell the others at the office. I don’t want to give Reese Donovan any leverage to sabotage this.”

“You got it. When will you be back in town?”

“Within an hour or two. Meet me at Bemelmans at nine. I’ll text you the address.”